FOLLOW-UP AND QUALITY OF SURVIVAL OF 67 CONSECUTIVE CHILDREN WITH CNS TUMORS

We report the findings at follow-up in 67 consecutive children with central nervous system tumors treated over a 5-year-period at a single institution. The diagnoses were supratentorial astrocytoma (n = 12), cerebellar astrocytoma (n = 10), ependymoma (n = 9), medulloblastoma (n = 9), brain stem glioma (n = 6), optic pathway glioma (n = 5), and others (n = 16). The survival rates were 83% for supratentorial astrocytomas at a median of 46.5 months, 90% for cerebellar astrocytomas and 55% for ependymomas at 40 months, respectively, 55% for medulloblastomas at 22 months, 33% for brain stem gliomas at 23 months, and 80% for optic pathway gliomas at 49 months. With regard to neurological sequelae, 13 patients were treated for epilepsy, 13 patients had mild to moderate neurological deficits, and 4 patients were severely disabled. Seventeen of 37 tested patients performed below average on formal neuropsychometric testing, one-fourth attended special education courses, and at least one-fourth suffered from behavioral and adjustment problems.